On February 28, 2022 the Grants Pass City Council took a giant step forward towards the completion of a replacement water treatment plant and directed staff to begin the design of a plant that uses a membrane technology with powdered activated carbon (PAC).
The membrane technology offers many advantages to the City’s water users. Membranes are considered a positive barrier. This means that nothing larger than 1 micron can pass through the system. This ensures a clean water supply even when river conditions are challenging. The addition of PAC will serve to adsorb potential taste and odors or cyanotoxins released by harmful algal blooms, as well as potential future contaminants of emerging concern.
Another key feature of the membrane technology is its ability to provide unattended operations during peak season. Currently the plant must hire 6 to 7 additional operators during the summer season to cover 24 hour per day operations. The sophisticated membrane operation is able to operate unattended for extended periods of time, reducing the need for additional staffing while ensuring that the City has a plentiful supply of clean, safe drinking water.
Plant design activities will continue through fall of 2023, when construction will begin. In the meantime, preliminary activities will continue such as geotechnical drilling will occur as consultants are looking to assess the water table and ground stability for the future plant.
The City invites all of its water users to follow the project at the following website: grantspasswater.org This website will be updated frequently with current project schedules, photos, and videos of this historic public works project. Viewers can also sign up to receive project updates through email by subscribing at the following link: https://www.grantspassoregon.gov/list.aspx.